


Take Me Out To The Ballgame

by seibelsays



Series: Fluffy Fridays [4]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Baseball, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-31
Updated: 2018-08-31
Packaged: 2019-07-04 09:26:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15838422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seibelsays/pseuds/seibelsays
Summary: How Bucky misunderstood every possible signal of Darcy's interest and became an inadvertent Mets fan.





	Take Me Out To The Ballgame

**Author's Note:**

> This is what happens when you people let me leave the house. I typed this puppy up on my way home from a baseball game. As always, all mistakes are mine.

“Hey Buck, can I grab you a beer?” 

“What’s the point?” Bucky grumbled from the couch.

“The point,” Steve replied evenly, “is that it’s baseball. Now, can I grab you a beer?”

“Just water.”

Steve nodded and wandered into the kitchen while Bucky fiddled with the remote. It took a minute, but he finally found the station he was looking for just as the lineups were announced. Steve sank into the couch heavily and passed the tumbler of ice water to Bucky as he popped the tab on his beer.

“Who’s pitching today?”

“Lewis.”

Steve hummed in acknowledgement, then took a long sip of his beer. 

He promptly choked when the tv cameras swung through the crowd to find Thor, Jane, and Darcy in the stands. Bucky’s eyes almost skipped right over Jane and Darcy - they looked like any other fan. Thor, on the other hand, had stuffed his immense bulk into the tiny seat along the third baseline, decked out in head to toe Mets gear, complete with foam finger, and looked to be enjoying himself immensely. When Bucky’s eyes flicked back to the two women, Jane was laughing indulgently while Darcy was taking photos on her phone.

“Anyone know they were going to do that?” Bucky muttered.

“It’s a public place, and like it or not, Thor is a public figure. I’m not surprised the tv crew found them.”

“I meant - did anyone know Thor was going to the game?”

Steve considered his friend for a moment, probably trying to decipher his tone. It was a losing battle most days - _Bucky_ was rarely able to decipher his own tone. “I don’t know - but you know Thor. If he wants to do something -”

“Jane will find a way to enable him.” He’d only met the scientist a few times, but her soft spot for Thor was obvious, even to him.

Steve grinned. “Well, more like she’ll enlist Darcy to figure out how to enable him, but yeah.”

Bucky was silent, staring at the tv, which had switched back to the game on the field rather than the spectacle Thor was making in the stands.

“I don’t think I’ve met Darcy,” Bucky muttered.

“That’s her on the left. She just got here a few weeks ago. She’d been wrapping things up at Jane’s old lab in New Mexico.”

Bucky hummed, but otherwise didn’t reply, his eyes still glued to the screen. This Darcy had a pretty smile.

“If you’re up to it later, we could track her down when they get back from the game,” Steve said easily, before taking another sip of his beer.

Bucky was silent for so long that Steve had to covertly check that the man hadn’t fallen asleep.

“Yeah, okay.”

***

Bucky and Steve entered the communal kitchen to the sounds of Clint Barton’s pestering.

“Darcy, you angel! You magical unicorn. You special light of-”

“I set aside an entire tray of mac and cheese just for you in the freezer, Clint,” Darcy said with a smirk.

“This is why you’re my favorite Avenger.”

Darcy snorted, but didn’t refute him. Bucky raised his eyebrows at Steve and Steve ignored all of them to greet Darcy.

“Darcy!” Steve called as he led Bucky further into the communal kitchen.

“Hey Steve-o. How’s it hangin’?”

“Have fun at the game?”

“Lewis pitched a no hitter. I had the time of my life.”

Clint snorted. “Always talkin’ him up.”

“Gee, wonder why?” Darcy snarked right back as she turned to the refrigerator. As she turned around, Bucky noticed she was wearing the jersey for the Mets’ pitcher, Matt Lewis. 

Steve noticed too. “Lewis fan, huh? Any relation?”

Darcy chuckled. “You could say that.” She turned back to the group and turned her far-too observant eyes to Bucky, who had been trying to blend into the shadows in the corner. “Hey there, friend.”

“Sorry! Darcy, this is Bucky. Bucky meet Darcy Lewis.”

Bucky tentatively raised one hand - his right hand, never his left when meeting people for the first time. “Hi.”

Darcy smiled warmly, her eyes glittering. “Nice to finally meet you, Sarge. I was wondering when Steve-o was going to bring you around.”

“You were?” No one ever wanted to meet him.

“‘Course.” The oven behind her beeped and Darcy’s attention was drawn away from him. He wasn’t sure if he should be relieved or disappointed. 

***

Bucky punched in his access code and pressed the button for the astrolab level. He was thankful that there were multiple levels of labs at this facility - if his therapist was going to mandate repeated walks through the labs, at least there would be some variety.

The elevator doors opened and Bucky could feel his heart rate increase. He cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and stepped out of the elevator. Glancing around, he found that no one paid him any attention. That was unusual - he was almost always the subject of at least a little bit of scrutiny when he took these walks. He thanked whatever lucky stars he might have left for his relative anonymity for this task and started his circuit.

About halfway around the level, Jane suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Her eyes glued to her StarkPad, she didn’t notice him until she’d walked right into his side.

“Oh!” Jane jumped, causing his heart rate to jump up another few beats. “Sorry!” Without waiting for an answer, Jane’s attention was once again on her tablet and she continued on her way.

Bucky on the other hand, wasn’t doing as well. The unexpected physical contact, as well her unfortunate choice of a lab coat, had just about worn Bucky’s sanity down to its last threads. The elevator was too far, he needed a faster exit. Immediately.

He ducked into the kitchen just off to his left and huddled against the wall, attempting to control his breathing and get his heart rate down. He felt his knees start to buckle and was about to slide down the wall onto the floor when he heard the microwave beep. He wasn’t in the kitchen alone.

Darcy turned around to face him. She gave him a quick once over before speaking, the intensity of her gaze in no way muted by the glasses she was wearing today. “Hey there, Sarge,” she greeted kindly, her voice quiet.

He nodded at her, not trusting his voice.

She gave him a small nod in return, then slowly turned back to the microwave, keeping her hands in view. Whoever had given her a safety briefing had done a good job. He hated that she’d needed it.

She pulled a large bowl from the microwave and quickly moved it to the counter. She shook one hand quickly - she must have burned herself on the ceramic.

“Afternoon game today - want some nachos?” she asked.

The randomness of the question gave him pause. Game? Nachos?

She turned back around to face him with a grin. “They’re nowhere as good as ballpark nachos, but they’ll do.” She motioned to the tv hanging from the wall opposite the entrance to the kitchen. “I talked Stark into the sports package for the lab. I hate missing afternoon games.

His eyes flicked to the tv, which was silently showing the Mets taking the field. 

“Okay,” he replied quietly, his breathing finally coming under control.

“Really?” she asked with probably more excitement than having lunch with him should warrant.

“Sure.”

She grabbed a towel to help her move the hot bowl of nacho cheese over to a table by the tv, where she already had chips and a fizzy drink waiting.

“Can I grab you something to drink?” she asked as he slowly approached.

“Water’s fine.”

She nodded and headed for the refrigerator while he slumped into a seat. 

“Here you go,” she said, handing a bottle to him.

“Thanks,” he muttered.

She slid into the chair next to him and grabbed a chip. “Dig in!”

He watched her eat a few chips first before helping himself to any. He couldn’t quite imagine why she would have asked him to join her, but it was a nice distraction. He wasn’t quite ready to brave the lab to get back to the elevator.

She sighed. “What I wouldn’t give to be out there, today. Sunshine, a warm breeze, no crazy astrophysicists trying to punch holes in the universe, an actual competitive team on the field…”

“Big baseball fan, I take it?” he asked. His therapist would be so proud and he was sure Steve was probably somewhere weeping for joy.

Darcy chuckled. “By default.”

Bucky chewed on a chip, his brow crinkled in confusion. 

Darcy glanced at him and opened her mouth to explain when a loud crash echoed through the room causing them both the jump.

“Dammit Janey!” Darcy sighed. “You okay?” At his nod, she gave him a wry smile. “Looks like duty calls. Nachos are all yours.” With that, she took off out of the room and down the hall, leaving Bucky alone in the kitchen.

***

A few days after their brief meeting over nachos, Bucky found Darcy wiping down the counter as he walked into the communal kitchen.

“Hey there, Sarge. You’re in luck - chili is about ready to serve if you’re hungry.”

He leaned against the counter, then thought better of it and straightened, hiding his hands in his pockets. “You cook for everyone around here?”

“It was an unexpected addition to my job description,” she teased. “But not an unwelcome one.” She pulled off her apron to reveal a grey T-shirt with bright blue writing.

“There’s no crying in baseball?” he read, a little confused.

“You don’t know that one?” At the shake of his head, Darcy’s eyes light up. “Well, I know what you’ll be doing this weekend.” At his confused look, she continued. “Me. You. Movie night. You’re going to love it.”

***

Bucky tried not to scowl at Clint as the archer shooed him further down the couch. The room was quickly filling with people and Bucky was seriously considering just going home. He tried to catch Darcy’s eye, but she was busy, whispering furiously to Jane.

“ _A League of Their Own_ , man. I love this movie,” Clint announced. “This was a great idea, Darce!”

Darcy waved at him distractedly in acknowledgement, but continued arguing with Jane, who was shrugging at her with a helpless look on her face.

“Yes, I am told that this film will be greatly beneficial in my continuing education in the ways of Midguardian sport,” Thor said, dropping onto the couch between Bucky and Clint. Bucky was jostled again and tried to shift to give himself a little more space, but there was no hope for it. Despite Pepper’s best efforts, most commercially available furniture was simply not up to the task of seating multiple superheroes. “Darcy has been most helpful in explaining the game of baseball,” he said to Bucky.

“Yeah, she’s great,” he replied, trying not to stare at Darcy, who looked like she was going to start growling in frustration at Jane any second.

Thor grinned at him, and the knowing look on his face was a bit disconcerting. Bucky suspected that Thor’s abilities extended beyond throwing a hammer at things and summoning lightning, but Bucky wasn’t about to ask and the Asgardian wasn’t offering up the information. And if those abilities extended into reading Bucky’s mind and seeing things he might not be ready to admit - things like how much he liked Darcy’s smile or how he’d like to be the one responsible for putting said smile on her face - he really didn’t want to know. “That she is, James. That she is.” Thor offered him the giant bowl of popcorn he was holding and Bucky shook his head. “I must admit, I have never been fond of any sport in which a team cannot score on defense,” Thor continued.

“And I don’t hold that against you, big guy,” Darcy called from the other side of the room. She and Jane had finally finished their argument and Darcy looked resigned. She caught Bucky’s eye.

“Sorry,” she mouthed at him.

He shook his head slightly. Why exactly was she apologizing to him?

She motioned to the kitchen. He pulled himself up out of the couch and followed her.

“Hey,” she said, a little sadly.

“Why are you apologizing?” he asked.

Darcy looked guilty. “This...wasn’t exactly what I had in mind for tonight. I had mentioned that you and I were going to watch the movie to Jane and Thor overheard and. Well.” She made a vauge gesture towards the common area where even more people had piled onto the couches. She gave him a tiny grin and shrugged. “It’s not that bad right? We can do the other thing some other night?”

“Absolutely.” Bucky had no idea what other thing she was referring to, but if a girl like her wanted to _plan_ on seeing him at some point in the future, he wasn’t about to argue.

***

An incessant knock on his door woke Bucky up from his nap on the couch. He dragged himself to the door and looked through the peephole to see a very eager-looking Steve on the other side.

He undid all of the locks and opened the door. “Hey.”

“Hey. Game’s about to start. I brought food.”

Bucky stepped aside to let Steve in. “None of that pineapple pizza shit this time, right? Because you can walk that garbage right back outta here.”

Steve chuckled. “Nope, not this time.”

“Good.” Bucky wandered over to the couch, straightening the cushions and folding up his blanket before grabbing the remote and tuning to the game.

Steve handed him a plate as he took a seat on the couch. Bucky stared at it.

“What the hell is this?”

“Chicken and waffles.”

He paused. “Kay,” he replied warily, then sat down.

They watched the first few innings in relative silence. Bucky had to admit that the whole “chicken and waffles” thing was actually pretty good, and helped himself to a few more servings. He was just sitting back down with his fifth plate when the tv cameras broke away from the game.

_“It’s Charity Night here at Citi Field and we’ve got all the Mets wives and girlfriends working the phones, ready to take your donations!”_

“Wonder who the charity partner is this year,” Steve mumbled abscently.

“What?”

“Every year they pick a different charity to raise money for - last year it was special needs baseball.”

Bucky nodded. It was a nice idea. Anything that didn’t involve him suiting up and playing nice for the cameras was fine by him. Not that anyone was really clamoring for _him_ to represent their charity, but he had a feeling Steve and Pepper would eventually try to swing public opinion that way. All part of the recovery process, apparently.

“Keep an ear out for the charity - I’m grabbing more food.” Steve stood and wandered into the kitchen.

Bucky smirked a little, wondering just how much money Steve would be donating this evening.

_“And here’s Darcy Lewis, representing Matt Lewis on the phones tonight.”_

Bucky’s eyes snapped to the television, where he was greeted by the smiling face of Darcy Lewis, waving at the camera while she spoke to someone on the phone and took their donation information.

Mets wives and girlfriends. Matt Lewis and Darcy Lewis. Being a baseball fan by default. 

He groaned as he put the pieces together. 

_Good for her. She’s sweet - she should be happy._

He tried to ignore the pang in his chest anyway.

***

“How come Darcy doesn’t wear a ring?”

“What?” Steve asked, panting lightly. They were finishing up the last few miles of their 30 mile run, and this section was all uphill. 

“Darcy. She never wears a ring.”

“Jane told me that Darcy banned all jewelry from the labs after an accident last year. I guess Thor brought some Asgardian stone back for Darcy and Matt had it set into a platinum setting after he signed some endorsement deal. The combination of the two, plus whatever they were poking with a stick that day caused Clint’s hearing aids to short out for a week. Darcy declared all jewelry too dangerous.”

“Oh.” He paused. “You met Matt?”

“Yeah, Darcy brought him around a few weeks ago. Nice guy. Why do you care about Darcy’s jewelry anyway?”

“Just curious.”

“Sure, Buck,” Steve smirked, clearly not believing him at all. “Race you to the next milepost?”

“Loser buys lunch.”

***

Bucky happily stuffed the last of his burger into his mouth. Lunch always tasted better when Steve bought it.

He tried to focus on that, rather than his growing disappointment that Darcy was married. She was sweet, funny, and didn’t seem overly bothered by him. He wouldn’t have minded getting to know her better. Maybe he could have even worked up the courage one day to ask her out. Alas, he’d lock that thought away. They could still be friends - by all accounts, Darcy was a great person to have in your corner. He just had to kick this tiny crush he was nursing first. He was sure to screw it all up at some point - no point in making things even more awkward by lusting after her.

“Were you going to hang around for Darcy’s thing tonight?”

“Thing?”

Steve nodded. “Yeah, she’s making a bunch of food for the game. Mets are away.”

He shrugged. “Stop in maybe. See how the day goes - I’m due for another stroll through the labs.”

Steve nodded. “Let me know.”

Bucky chewed on a fry. “When did we become Mets fans, anyway?”

Steve snorted. “The day we met Darcy.”

***

Bucky exhaled slowly, breathing a sigh of relief that another lap of the labs was done. He’d tried the astrolab level again today. He’d told his therapist it was because he hadn’t made it without stopping the last time. Which was absolutely true. 

What he wouldn’t admit out loud was that he was also hoping to see Darcy. He really didn’t need people harassing him about having a thing for a married woman. He would get over it, eventually, and didn’t need the likes of Clint Barton holding it over his head for all eternity.

He’d made it about 3/4 of the way through the level before his heart rate sped up. He veered off course so he could pass by Jane and Darcy’s lab again. He slowed his pace slightly, despite his pounding heart, and tried to catch Darcy’s eye. Almost immediately, Darcy glanced up and waved, throwing one of her sunny grins his way.

He’d practically floated through the rest of the lab back to the elevator after that. 

He wasn’t above indulging in his crush in the name of his recovery. He could kick himself for it later. Wasn’t that why he went to therapy?

(That probably wasn’t why he went to therapy.)

The elevator doors opened to reveal Pepper Potts, absorbed in something she was reading on her phone. She glanced up at him and smiled. 

“Hello James,” she greeted, tucking her phone away.

“Ms. Potts,” he replied with a nod as he stepped onto the elevator.

“How many times do I have to remind you,” she chided, her smile growing, “it’s Pepper.”

“You stop calling me James, I’ll stop calling you Ms. Potts,” he teased lightly. It was interesting how he could easily joke with her, when just speaking to so many other people was a struggle. His therapist would have a field day.

She rolled her eyes indulgently. “Fine then. Bucky. How are you?”

“I’m doin’ okay, Pepper, how about you? That was a very generous donation you made to charity night. It’s gonna make a lot of kids happy.”

Pepper waved him off. “It wasn’t even a question when Darcy mentioned the charity.”

Bucky stiffened at the mention of Darcy. “Yeah she…” he cleared his throat and tried again as Pepper tried to hide her smile. He hoped she was just being encouraging. “I saw her on tv. For the telethon.”

Pepper frowned. “I’m still annoyed we couldn’t get her out of that stupid WAG clause.”

“WAG clause?

Pepper nodded. “In Matt’s contract. A wife or girlfriend is required to do a certain number of hours of charity work or appearances on behalf of the team. Since Matt doesn’t have a significant other, Darcy has to fill in.”

That took a moment to process. “Wait what?”

Pepper’s jaw hardened with annoyance, but she gave him an approving nod, misunderstanding his confusion. “I know! It’s absolutely ridiculous that Darcy has to make all these appearances just because her brother is a pitcher for the Mets. She couldn’t possibly have her own life, could she?”

_Darcy’s. **Brother.**_

He was an idiot.

***

“Come on Janey, one more set,” Darcy encouraged.

Bucky halted his exit from the gym locker room. He and Steve had just finished another run, and he had been looking forward to heading home, but if Darcy was in the gym…Well, since finding out that Matt Lewis was Darcy’s _brother_ and not her _husband_ , he had allowed his interest to grow a bit. He didn’t want to pass up a chance to talk to her.

“I. Am. A. Scientist!” Jane panted, each word punctuated by a punch to the heavy bag. She gave one wobbly kick towards its center and then stood up straight. “How the hell did I get involved with all these…these... _athletes_?” She practically spit the last word in disgust.

Darcy grinned. “We’ve got to keep you limber somehow, because I don’t have the money to invest in a post-coital wheelchair for you.”

Bucky groaned internally. That was far more information than he needed about Jane and Thor’s love life. He decided to make his presence known before the two women could take that conversation any further.

“Hi ladies,” he called.

“Speaking of our unconventional love lives,” Jane muttered, earning a smack from Darcy. He wondered if Jane remembered his enhanced hearing. 

Judging by the smug look on her face, she did. Great. His interest in Darcy was obvious and Jane was trolling him. Just what he needed.

“Hey Bucky,” Darcy said with a heart-stopping grin.

“I see you’ve managed to commandeer the one heavy bag Steve has yet to break.”

Jane perked up. “Actually, we had just finished up, so it’s all yours!”

“Oh no, that’s -”

“See you later!” Jane practically ran out the door.

Darcy hung her head, but he could hear her laughing.

“Sorry,” he said, sheepishly.

Darcy waved away his apology. “You’re good. Jane hates the gym.”

“Why does she come then?”

Darcy rubbed her stomach. “Have to work off those ballpark nachos somehow,” she laughed.

Her laugh bolstered his courage. He smiled at her and she flushed a little and damn if that didn’t do things for him. “Speaking of...since you seem to be the ringleader of all things baseball...um…” he trailed off and briefly clenched his fist. And then quickly unclenched it, as he didn’t want the metal hand to make her nervous. He hoped she couldn’t hear the gears moving or the plates shifting. His noisy fucker of a prosthetic arm was a dead giveaway when he was nervous.

“You want to go to a game sometime?” she prompted.

“Could be fun,” he bit out. Didn’t he used to be better at this? He could have sworn someone told him he used to be better at this.

“You want to go...with me?” she clarified, her expression blank.

“Yeah. And if Jane and Thor or whoever else is going. Yeah.”

“I’d love that.”

“Yeah?”

She nodded, then tilted her head like she was considering something. “You know...we don’t _have_ to wait for Thor and Jane. If there’s a game you want to go to, we could...just go. Me and you.”

He blinked. “Just me and you?”

“Or not!” she said quickly.

“No, that would be...kinda what I had in mind, actually.”

“Yeah?” she gave him a hopeful grin.

“Yes.”

“Dodgers are in town on Sunday afternoon.”

“It’s a date.” Oh shit. “I mean -”

“Perfect!” Her eyes were laughing at him, but she wore a fond expression. “I’ll swing by around 11AM. See you then!” She turned to go, glancing over she shoulder and giving him a quick wave before she exited the gym.

He stood in front of the heavy bag, stunned. He had a date with Darcy Lewis.

Holy shit, he had a _date_ with _Darcy Lewis_.

***

“BUCKY!” Steve screamed desperately.

Bucky blinked slowly, trying to get his bearings. Steve was holding him up and had vicious bruises forming on his face and a nasty gash in his side. Glancing around, he saw that the apartment was a complete disaster - his bed had been flipped, the end table collapsed, and his bookshelves looked as though something suspiciously Steve-shaped had been thrown into them.

“Steve?” he tried to say, but his voice was scratchy and his throat felt raw. 

Steve heaved a sigh of relief. “It’s okay, Buck.” He guided them both out into the living room, where he gently set Bucky on the couch.

Bucky looked down at himself. He was in the sweatpants that he remembered putting on to go to bed, but he was missing his shirt. The dried remains of vomit clung to his chest and there were bruises rapidly forming along his ribcage.

“What happened?” he rasped.

“Bad night,” Steve shrugged. “FRIDAY alerted me.”

“Fuck,” he muttered.

“It’s okay, Buck. We’ll get this place cleaned up and -”

“I’m so tired, Steve.”

Steve was silent, but nodded slowly. “I know,” he quietly replied, finally. “But it’s been six months since the last time this happened. You _are_ getting better.”

Bucky didn’t reply. 

“Let’s get you into the bathroom so you can clean up. We can call the doc in the morning.”

“Tomorrow still Sunday?”

“Technically today’s Sunday, but yeah. Why?”

He chewed on his lip. “I had a date.”

***

He stirred at the knock on the door, but couldn’t drag himself off the couch to go answer it.

“Go away,” he mumbled, cracking open his eyes to see the clock. 11:00AM.

_Dammit._

He heard movement behind the couch, as Steve went to answer the door.

“Darcy, hi,” his friend said quietly.

“Steve? Oh...hey…” Darcy sounded confused. Bucky couldn’t blame her.

“Bucky’s a bit indisposed today,” Steve whispered. For all the good it would do. Damn serum.

“Oh...oh no, is he okay?” He wanted to kiss her for the concern in her voice. 

“He will be. But I can pay you for the tickets -”

“No no no, don’t you dare. It’s fine,” Darcy insisted. “I can find someone else to go.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

“I mean...if you want...I could go with you. To the game,” Steve said.

Darcy hesitated. “Doesn’t Bucky need you?”

“He’s asleep. He’ll probably sleep most of today.”

“Oh, well sure then. If you’re sure he’ll be okay. Ticket’s all yours.”

“Great. I’ll just grab my jacket.”

Did Steve really just steal Bucky’s date? If he were in better condition, he’d probably try to deck the punk. Again. 

Then again, Steve had gotten better at talking to pretty girls. A tiny bit of pride puffed in Bucky’s chest and he was too exhausted to try to fight it down. He could be annoyed with Steve later.

Bucky could hear Steve moving around inside briefly before returning to the door.

“Actually, could you - “ Bucky heard Darcy fumbling with a bag. “My old roommate works in product development for New Era - you know, the hats the teams wear? I asked her to throw something together for Bucky for today. Maybe it will cheer him up a bit when he wakes up.”

More rustling as Steve accepted the bag. “I’ll set it in the kitchen for him. I’m sure he’ll love it.”

More movement, and then the door closed and silence reigned over the apartment. Bucky closed his eyes and tried not to picture the date he was missing or think about exactly _why_ he was missing it.

***

Bucky blinked slowly awake. The clock read 2:12, and judging by the amount of light peeking through the seems in his curtains, he guessed it was 2 in the afternoon.

The majority of his headache was gone, having receded to an occasional mild thud. He slowly sat up. When the room stopped spinning, he padded slowly into the kitchen, where Steve had soup sitting on the stove. Bucky flicked on the burner to start warming the soup, then grabbed a glass from the cabinet and filled it with water from the filter. He drained it quickly, then refilled it. Once the soup was ready, he poured it into a mug and wandered back over to the couch.

He grabbed the remote and tuned the tv to the game. Darcy’s brother was pitching, and the game was tied 2-2 in the bottom of the 4th.

He slowly ate his soup as the game went on. Matt Lewis was proving to be a pretty good pitcher and was causing all kinds of problems for the Dodgers lineup. A weak grin slid across his face as the Dodgers manager became more and more frustrated. 

By the 7th inning, Bucky had finished his soup and settled back down on the couch to was listen to the game with his eyes closed. 

_“Matt Lewis steps to the plate…”_

Bucky’s eyes popped open, wanting to watch Darcy’s brother at bat. A quick scan of the stats on the screen showed that the bases were loaded.

First pitch went wide. Ball one.

Second pitch was a little too high. Bucky wouldn’t have called it a strike, but in his opinion arguing with the umpire over a strike was as American as baseball itself.

The next pitch was right down the middle. _Crack._ The ball flew up...up…gone. Grand slam.

He smiled weakly as the crowd went crazy in the stands with celebrations. The camera swung wildly over the cheering crowd as Matt Lewis took his lap of the bases. The feeling turned bittersweet as he remembered that he was supposed to be there right now.

Then the camera paused on one of the suites and the tv flashed a graphic, naming who was in the suite.

Captain America and Darcy Lewis.

Darcy had jumped into Steve’s arms and Steve was swinging her around in a circle as they both cheered. After a few rotations, Steve set her down and Darcy launched into a wild celebratory dance, complete with disco moves and something resembling the can-can. Steve laughed heartily and the camera cut back to Matt Lewis heading for home base.

Bucky blinked. The entire scene he’d just witnessed replaying itself over and over in his brain. 

They’d looked...happy.

He missed the next few at bats, replaying the scene in his head. The inning ended and the announcers were blabbing about strategy and Matt Lewis’s upcoming contract negotiations. He tuned most of it out. While the announcers spoke, the camera showed some of the in-game entertainment. This inning was something called a Kiss Cam.

And, of course, because the universe hates him, Steve and Darcy show up on screen.

Steve had flushed a rather magnificent shade of red, but Darcy appeared unfazed. The corner of her mouth twitched. He thought he knew her well enough by now to interpret that look as though she was trying to decide which rude hand gesture to direct at the camera, and only just restraining herself. The crowd started to cheer more and more wildly for the two of them, until Darcy rolled her eyes, and gave Steve a peck on the cheek.

His phone started buzzing like crazy. He flipped it over before it could vibrate off the table and winced at the bright light of the phone in the darkened room.

What the hell was Twitter and why was it buzzing at him? That was the last time he was leaving his phone anywhere in Natasha Romanoff’s vicinity. 

He squinted at the phone, trying to make the words stop swimming in front of his eyes. Finally, the words made sense.

_Captain America and His New Girlfriend Celebrate at Mets Game_

God. Dammit.

***

It was another three weeks before Bucky could bring himself to go anywhere near any place he might see Darcy. There hadn’t been another public sighting of Cap and his lady love, as the press was so fond of calling her, so the tabloids had calmed down slightly, but Bucky hadn’t been able to face her. Steve hadn’t said a word about it, and Bucky wasn’t about to ask. 

His therapist had opinions on his communication skills. His therapist could bite him.

The elevator doors opened to the communal kitchen and Bucky slowly stepped inside. 

“Darcy. My angel. My sweet sunshine child. I’ve only just heard the news and I have to tell you that if you break Cap’s heart, I’ll break your kneecaps,” Clint said with dramatic flare. “OW!”

Darcy grinned evilly at him as she spun her fork between her fingers. “Stop saying foolish shit and I’ll stop stabbing you with my fork.”

He hurried down the hall so he couldn’t hear any more of their conversation.

_Coward._

***

The bag was mocking him. 

He hadn’t been up to investigating the gift Darcy had left for him the day of their thwarted date - and in the aftermath, he couldn’t quite bring himself to think about it, let alone open it. 

So it sat on his counter.

For a month.

His therapist had opinions.

He sighed and dragged the bag towards him and peeked inside, then reached in and pulled out a hat. At first glance, it looked like any other Mets hat. Which was nice, he supposed, although he wasn’t entirely sure why Darcy had gone out of her way to get it from her friend. Maybe it was a new design or something? He didn’t really pay attention to those things.

He flipped the hat over and paused. 

The inside of the hat had the old Brooklyn Dodgers logo. 

He pulled at little at the hat and found that it easily flipped inside out. The damn thing was reversible.

He sighed. That was a fun trick. And a damn considerate gift - something he could wear to the game, where she was under scrutiny from the team due to her brother’s contract, but also something he could wear elsewhere. 

His heart constricted in his chest. It would figure that he would finally find someone he was interested in, who was funny and considerate and didn’t seem all that phased by his miriad issues - only to lose her in the blink of an eye as a result of said issues. Lose her to his best friend, no less.

He shoved the hat back in the bag and threw it into the back of the hall closet, all the while ignoring the ache that was slowly spreading through his chest.

***

He puttered around the Avengers private kitchen, making himself some tea before he had to submit himself to Dr. Banner for yet another sleep study. 

A soft knock drew his eyes towards the door.

“Hey you,” Darcy said softly.

“Hey,” he replied in surprise. Darcy didn’t have access to this level, how did she - 

Oh. Right. Steve stayed on this level sometimes. He didn’t want to think about that.

She stared at him, waiting for him to speak, her expression changed. She started out frustrated and angry, but that slowly morphed into understanding, and finally resignation. To his eyes, she was lovely throughout, and he didn’t have the energy to try to suppress the feeling. There was no harm in briefly admiring his best friend’s girl, if the admiration was only inside his head. 

God, he was tired.

“Haven’t seen you around much. Are you feeling better?” she asked.

He nodded. 

“I’m glad,” she replied quietly.

The tea kettle whistled on the stove and Bucky quickly turned to shut down the burner. “Tea?” he asked.

“Sure.”

He grabbed another mug from the cabinet and silently went through the motions of brewing their tea. When it was done, he slid her mug across the counter towards her. She finally stepped away from the doorway and joined him in the kitchen.

“You and Steve looked like you had fun that day,” he said quietly.

She blew gently across her tea, scattering the steam, before taking a sip. “We did have fun.”

He smiled at her sadly. He really should have known better than to hope. His days of getting the girl were long behind him.

“ _Steve_ wasn’t who I wanted to be having fun with though.”

His eyes snapped to hers and she gave him a small smile.

“If I remember correctly, I was supposed to be on a date with _you_.” There was no accusation in her eyes, just...warmth.

He continued to stare at her, unable to speak.

“Bucky...Steve and I are friends. That’s it. That whole suite, those seats...I got those for you.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. I’ve been trying to get you on a date for...oh sweet Bi-Frost, months now. So when you asked about the game, I thought it was finally our chance, you know? I wanted it to be nice. I thought...maybe where I usually sit in the bleachers would be too much. So I called the team’s family rep, snagged two tickets for suite level. Away from other people, private bathroom if you really needed to hide for a bit, early entry, late exit...I thought...Well, I just wanted our date to be nice.”

That was...far more effort that he would have anticipated someone putting in to a date with him.

“I’m sorry,” he blurted.

Darcy looked confused. “For what?”

“You shouldn’t have to do that. Go to all that trouble. You did all that and then I couldn’t even...I’m sorry I’m not...normal, anymore.”

“Normal is boring,” she said firmly. “And it wasn’t any trouble.”

He shook his head, but didn’t reply.

“I have it on good authority that Matt Lewis is looking for a trade this offseason,” Darcy continued, fidgeting with her mug. “I heard the Dodgers are top of his list.”

“Oh,” he replied, not entirely sure what else to say.

“And I was thinking...if _all_ goes well, maybe we could try again, you know? Plan on making a date of Dodgers’ opening day?”

“You’d still want to?”

“Yes.”

He nodded slowly. “It’s August...opening day is a long way off.”

“Well,” she grinned, dragging out the word, “I _did_ already pay for the entire season streaming package. And flying across the country for a first date is weird. So we should probably have a few dates between now and then. Just to be sure.”

A smile slowly crept across his face. “A few? With me?”

“Dates. Yes, with you.”

“Darcy, I…” His voice trailed off as she looked at him with so much hope in her eyes. “I would love that.”

Her answering grin took over her entire face and Bucky wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen anything quite so lovely.

“We have to seal it. It’s not a promise if we don’t,” she said, a touch a mischief in her eyes.

“Seal it, how?”

She moved around the counter, stepping into his personal space. 

“Like this,” she whispered, and tugged on his shirt as she stood on her tiptoes and brushed her lips against his. “Now it's a promise.”

“We should do that again. To be sure,” he replied.

“Anytime you’d like,” she murmured before capturing his lips again.

***

_Eight Months Later - Dodgers’ Opening Day_

Bucky took a deep breath to try to settle his nerves. The street was quiet as most of the pre-game festivities hadn’t kicked off just yet. 

“I’m with you every step, Sarge,” Darcy cooed into his ear as she slipped her hand into his.

He could feel the icy fingers of anxiety that had been crawling around his ribcage flee at the sound of her voice and he smiled. A real smile. One that had been making more and more of an appearance lately, the longer he and Darcy explored this crazy thing they had going.

“Ready to go in?” she asked.

He nodded and she lead the way, flashing their tickets and badges as needed as they made their way into the suite she’d finangled for today’s game.

When they arrived, Matt was waiting for them. 

“Bro!” Darcy cried in delight. “Shouldn’t you be getting ready for the game?”

Matt reached down to hug her. “It’s our first game as a Dodgers family. Couldn’t let that go uncelebrated.” He released Darcy and extended a hand to Bucky. “Hey man.”

“Hey,” Bucky greeted. He liked Matt. They got along, and he respected that Matt still attempted to give him the shovel talk when they first met six months ago, despite...well, everything. 

“So. You ready to wow ‘em today?” Darcy teased her brother.

“Wow them from the bullpen? Sure.”

“Whaaaat I thought you were starting today! BOOOOOOO! Where’s that manager, we need to chat!” Darcy made for the door and Bucky grabbed her around the waist before she got very far, lifting her up slightly and setting her back down in front of her brother.

“Hey now,” she said, glaring at him with mischief in her eyes and a laugh in her voice. “I’m only to be manhandled in the bedroom, Sarge.”

Matt threw his hands over his ears and made retching sounds. 

Bucky chuckled, and he could feel his smile growing ever wider. “Stop traumatizing your brother. He’s got a game to win.”

“Spoilsport.” Darcy bumped him with her hip and turned back to her brother. “Do good out there today. Even if it’s just, you know, not getting sunburnt or something.”

“Thanks, Darce.” Matt gave Darcy one last hug before turning to leave. “Hey, we doing dinner after the game?”

Darcy glanced at him and he shrugged. “We’ll see how the game goes,” she replied.

“Okay, text me. We can always do pizza at my place if that’s easier.”

“Byeeeeeeeeee!” Darcy sang at him.

Since the day they’d first met, Bucky had always been amazed at Darcy’s easy acceptance of his issues. Seeing her brother accept and accommodate him so easily as well warmed his heart. He hadn’t expected to find a family again, outside of Steve. It was a nice feeling. 

One he wanted to hold on to.

“Darcy,” he muttered, grabbing her hands and pulling her to him.

“Yeah, baby? What’s up?” Darcy was smiling at him and the whole damn world just. Made sense.

“I love you.”

Darcy stilled and then her smile grew even bigger. “Really?”

“Really.”

She tugged on his hand and raised up on her toes to press a kiss to his lips. “I love you, too.”


End file.
